Like I said earlier, I have no wish to compare myself to Seals or Delta but "bar brawlers" are different. Especially if they got a few under their belt already. A word to the wise. If you are going to brawl with someone, buy him a few rounds first. It makes a heck of a difference.

So true. People who drink and become aggressive should not drink. But, when it involves me, I am glad they do.
Apache

Saw the movie a couple of nights ago, and have read all the Jack Reacher books except the latest one (just haven't gotten 'round to it). I didn't think it was all that bad. A little slow getting going, but if you don't focus on Tom Cruise's physical differences from the book descriptions of the character, they did a decent job with the adaptation.

My wife on the other hand thought the movie was really bad. To each their own!

I didn't think it was all that bad. A little slow getting going, but if you don't focus on Tom Cruise's physical differences from the book descriptions of the character, they did a decent job with the adaptation.

My wife on the other hand thought the movie was really bad.

I've read all the books (they are among my favorite, and I also appreciate that Child and publisher don't gouge me for buying the books when they are released). Totally agree - the movie was not bad if you can get past the physical attributes and I thought they did an okay job of adapting the story and dialog. Plus I'm from Pittsburgh (don't live there now) so I appreciated the scenery as well.

My wife enjoyed the movie, though we perhaps went too soon after Newtown, and I'm sure the movie will suffer for it.

You know who'd be good as Reacher? Liam Neeson, 15 years ago. Or just rewrite the character as older. (why not, they rewrote him shorter)

If you've seen him in Taken and The Grey, you know what I mean. Trivia: Neeson was an amateur boxer before he became an actor. He's not real muscular, but he has the physicality and plenty of acting chops.

I read Killing Floor a while back, but have recently read The Enemy, Die Trying, Tripwire and I'm close to finishing Running Blind (I've had the flu for 10 days and reading is the only thing making me feel human).

I have to say, all the references to Reacher's physical description (prevalent in all the books) make me smile a bit. It's pretty funny that Child is now saying that his character's physique (and his frequent mention of it) was nothing more than a 'metaphor'. Ha!

If he continues writing the Reacher series, I'll be curious to see if there's any further descriptive mention of his 6'5", 225 lb., blond-haired, blue-eyed ex-MP-now-turned-drifter.

I'm now in the middle of Book 12 (Nothing to Lose) of the 17 Reacher books written so far. One Shot(upon which the movie is based) was probably the least interesting to me -- the plot is a bit convoluted and at about the half-way mark, I found I was having trouble mustering any sympathy for any of the characters. Child's books are fast, easy reads so I finished it mainly so I could continue on to The Hard Way(which I liked better).

Of all the books I've read so far, Bad Luck and Trouble (in which Reacher meets up with several comrades from his old Army MP unit) was the most enjoyable. Believable plot, engaging characters, humor, action -- it was a fun read.

I kind of wish they'd chosen it for the movie instead of One Shot, but would still have no interest in seeing it with Tom Cruise playing the role of Jack Reacher.

Of all the books I've read so far, Bad Luck and Trouble (in which Reacher meets up with several comrades from his old Army MP unit) was the most enjoyable. Believable plot, engaging characters, humor, action -- it was a fun read.

Agreed, I have rated "Bad Luck and Trouble" highest among the Reacher series.

Here is the first sentence from the mini-review of the movie that appeared in the Weekend section of yesterday's Washington Post:

Presumably taking a long, self-indulgent glance at his What Would Clint Do? bracelet, Tom Cruise takes on the iconic role of surly vigilante in “Jack Reacher,” resulting in a mismatch of wincingly epic proportions.

Wow. Ok, I don't like cruise any more than the rest of you guys, but I am surprised how much you guys liked the reacher novels. I just read the first novel and found it silly with one dimensional characters. Are the other books any better, or you guys just prefer the action (either variety) more than I do?